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Compensation Bill [HL]

I support the argument put by the noble Lord, Lord Goodhart. I raised the question of the Office of Fair Trading and the Competition Commission and had an answer from the Minister. However, given the flexibility of this Bill and the circumstances surrounding claims management, there is a strong argument for involving the Office of Fair Trading and the Competition Commission. For a regulator to encourage competition is a      contradiction, because regulation reduces competition—there is no doubt about that. If you put up barriers to entry into any market, which is what the regulator is charged to do under this Bill, you will reduce competition and probably increase costs to those using the services over those which they might have paid if the regulation was not in existence. That may not be a sufficient argument against the regulation, but there is no doubt that the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 has led to the market paying higher fees    than it otherwise would. Encouraging competition is a contradiction in terms in this context and should be withdrawn from the Bill.